I will give you a few stories that reflect Beethoven’s character

You can choose from them

Eroica Symphony

Beethoven Fen's heart was filled with the ideals of freedom, equality, and fraternity. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the French bourgeois revolution in 1789. In 1798, General Bernadotte (1763-1844) served as the French ambassador to Vienna. Beethoven often visited his home and had close contacts with the people around him. In 1802, at the suggestion of Bernadotte, Beethoven began to write the "Third Symphony" dedicated to Napoleon. In his mind, Napoleon was a hero who destroyed the autocratic system and realized his ideals and revolution. In 1804, Beethoven completed the "Third Symphony". Just as he was preparing to dedicate it to Napoleon, news of Napoleon's proclaimed emperor reached Vienna. When Beethoven learned the news from his student Liss (1784-1838), he angrily shouted: "He is just an ordinary person. Now he will also trample on human rights to fulfill his personal ambitions. He will ride on the Become a tyrant over everyone!" He walked to the table, tore up the dedication to Napoleon and threw it on the floor, not allowing anyone else to pick it up. After many days, Beethoven's anger gradually subsided and he allowed this work to be made public. In December 1804, the symphony was performed for the first time at the court of Prince Robkowitz in Vienna. The first public performance at the Vienna Theater in April 1805 was conducted by Beethoven himself. The program notes read: "A new grand symphony in D sharp major, Ludwig van Bedow Composed by Mr. Fen, dedicated to His Royal Highness Prince Lobkovitz. "Strangely, Beethoven did not say it was in E-flat major, but said it was in D-sharp major. When the score was published in October 1806, the title page printed: The Eroica Symphony was written in memory of a great man. From then on, the "Third Symphony" was called the "Eroica Symphony".

Symphony of Destiny

The first four notes of Beethoven's "Symphony in C minor" (Op. 67) are strong and heavy, like the sound of fate knocking on the door. This work is therefore called "Symphony of Destiny". "Symphony of Destiny" was composed from 1805 to 1808. Beethoven already said in a letter to his friend Wegler (1765-1848) in November 1808: "I want to block the throat of fate, and it will never completely overwhelm me!" "Fate knocks "The sound of the door" has already appeared in the third movement of "Piano Sonata in C minor" (Op. 10-1) composed in 1798, and later appeared in the third movement of "String Quartet in D major" (Op. 18-3) , the first movement of "Passionate Sonata" (Op. 57), the third "Leonora" Overture (Op. 72), "String Quartet in E flat major" (Op. 74) and other works. It can be seen that defeating fate through struggle has been Beethoven's consistent creative thought. The raging passion for struggle expressed in "Symphony of Destiny" is highly contagious. When the Spanish alto singer Maribrandt heard "Symphony of Destiny" for the first time, she was so frightened that she had to leave. An old guard of Napoleon couldn't help but jump up and shout after hearing the theme at the beginning of the fourth movement: "This is the Emperor!" Berlioz regarded the thrilling struggle scene in "Symphony of Destiny" as "Othello's obedience" Iago's slander misunderstood Desdemona's terrible rage when she had an affair with others. "Schumann believed: "Although you hear this symphony often, it always has a constant power on you. ——Just like the phenomena in nature that occur from time to time, they always make people feel frightened.” In May and June of 1830, Mendelssohn stayed in Weimar for two weeks, meeting Goethe for the last time, and wrote a poem on the piano. He performed famous works of ancient and modern times. Goethe was greatly excited after listening to the first movement of the "Symphony of Destiny". He said: "This is magnificent and thrilling. It will almost shake the house down. If many people play it together, I don't know what will happen. "In March 1841, Engels listened to the performance of "Symphony of Destiny". He praised this work in a letter to his sister and said: "If you don't know this wonderful thing, then you have heard nothing in your life." He said that in the first movement he heard "that complete The sorrow of despair, the pain of melancholy"; in the second movement, "the tender melancholy of love" is heard; and in the third and fourth movements, "the powerful, young, and powerful voice expressed on the trumpet" The joy of freedom” is so inspiring. Engels revealed the essence of "Symphony of Destiny" in just a few sentences.

"Moonlight Sonata"

"Moonlight Sonata" was originally called "Piano Sonata in C sharp minor", also known as "Moonlight Sonata". It was composed in 1801 and was close to the maturity of Beethoven's creation. Expect. This work has three movements: In the first movement, the theme of sighs is integrated into his deafness and melancholy thoughts. The second movement expresses the sweet dream of memories, which is also like a blueprint for the future. The third movement is an exciting Presto. The most beautiful thing about this work is the first movement, which reminds people of moonlight.

The reason why this piano piece is called "Moonlight" is because the German poet Ludwig Leerstable said after hearing it: "After listening to the first movement of this work, , reminds me of Lake Lucerne in Switzerland, and the bright moonlight rippling on the lake.

" Later, the publisher added the title "Moonlight" based on this passage, and various legends about the composer improvising under the moonlight became popular. In fact, it was not the bright moonlight that touched Beethoven's creation, but Beethoven's music. Finn's painful mood after the failure of his first love affair with Giulietta Guichardi (1784-1856)

Julietta Guichardi was the count's daughter, 14 years younger than Beethoven. Sincerely in love, the family gap forced the two to break up. After suffering this heavy blow, Beethoven poured out all the inner pain and intense grief and indignation caused by the feudal hierarchy into this passionate and fiery piano music. . Therefore, this piece is dedicated to her.

Perhaps the Russian art critic Stasov (1824-1906) has a more reasonable interpretation. After listening to Liszt's performance in Petersburg, he thought this sonata was a complete tragedy. The first movement was full of wistful tenderness and sometimes a mental state full of dark premonitions. There was a similar impression: “…from far, far away, as if from the depths of the invisible soul, a quiet voice suddenly rose. Some voices are melancholy, full of infinite sorrow; others are pensive, with a flood of memories and dark omens..."

There is a misrepresented anecdote surrounding "Moonlight". In the first half of the century, a German music critic published an article saying that Beethoven's "Piano Sonata in C sharp minor" reminded him of "the moonlight rippling on the water of Lake Lucerne in Switzerland", so the shrewd publisher named it "Moonlight Song". I made up a touching "story" for the title: "One night, Beethoven was walking on the outskirts of Vienna and suddenly heard the sound of a piano, and it was his work. Looking for the sound, he walked to the window of an old house and found a blind girl playing. It was only after he entered the house that he learned that she loved Beethoven's music. The composer was so moved that he wrote this moonlight song under the moonlight...".

This story is purely fictional. In fact, when Beethoven wrote this work, it was in 1801. At that time, his deafness was getting worse and the pain of broken love had not yet healed. In a painful state of mind, he wrote this piano sonata.

This fictional story was later used as a Chinese textbook for fifth grade primary schools in my country. The text "Moonlight"

Passionate Sonata

Schindler once asked Beethoven about the "Sonata in D minor" (Op. 31 No. 2) and the "Sonata in F minor". "(Opus No. 57), Beethoven's answer was: "Please read Shakespeare's "The Tempest." "So the former was called "Tempest Sonata", while the latter was given the title "Passionate Sonata" by Hamburg music publisher Krantz (1789-1870). (Another saying is that the title "Passionate" was given by the German The title "Appassionate" was added by the pianist, violinist, composer and conductor (1824-1910), which seems to be unfounded. Beethoven did not approve it, but it is used for this heroic and imposing work. This majestic work is quite appropriate. After hearing the Russian composer and conductor Doblovin (1894-1953) perform this sonata in Moscow, Lenin once said: "I don't know what else to do." There is something better than the Passionate Sonata, and I would listen to it every day. This is brilliant, unprecedented music. I always think with perhaps childish boastfulness: What miracles people can create! "On October 30, 1870, Paris had been surrounded by the Prussian army for more than three months during the Franco-Prussian War. In the headquarters of Prussian King William in Versailles, the iron-blooded Prime Minister Bismarck was negotiating with Thiers, the head of the French bourgeois government. Conditions for the armistice. That night, Gertel, who had served as the German ambassador to Italy, played the "Appassionata" for Bismarck on a dilapidated piano in Verhan. After listening to the last movement, Bismarck said: " This is the cry of struggle for an entire generation. "He understood Beethoven's "enthusiasm" from the perspective of a bloodthirsty careerist. He once said: "If I can listen to this piece of music often, my courage will not dry up" because "Beethoven Best suited to my nerves." Beethoven said on June 29, 1801: "My art serves to improve the lot of poor people. "If Beethoven was known underground and heard that his music was being used by Bismarck, he must have been determined to die.

Beethoven's friend

Melzer (1772-1838) ), famous for inventing and manufacturing mechanical musical instruments. In the autumn of 1813, Beethoven wrote a war symphony for the universal piano (mechanical orchestra) invented by Meltzer, titled "Wellington's Victory" or "The Victory of Wellington". "Battle of Victoria" describes the scene where British general Wellington defeated Napoleon in the northern Spanish city of Victoria on June 21 of the same year. Meltzer once created today's universal weapon based on the invention of Winkel (1776-1826). Beethoven first used it and marked the speed of his works according to the number of beats it beats per minute. Beethoven's hearing aid was also made for him by Meltzel around 1810. When sending Meltzel on his trip, he wrote the most interesting canon to praise the creator of the metronome. This canon, which symbolizes the friendship between Beethoven and Meltzer, was later selected by Beethoven into his collection. The Eighth Symphony (Op. 93) becomes the theme of the second movement.

Seventh Symphony on the Ballet Stage

Wagner called Beethoven's "Seventh Symphony" (Opus 92) "the ultimate form of dance" and "the highest form of dance" ”, “The most wonderful expression of body movement according to ideal form”. It is said that he once imagined using dance to perform the Seventh Symphony with Liszt's piano accompaniment. Wagner's ideal was later realized by Russian dance drama director Massin. In 1938, he arranged this symphony into a ballet to express an allegorical storyline - the creation and destruction of the world: the first movement: Creation - under the guidance of the creative spirit, the chaotic world became An orderly home for plants and animals. Men and women appeared, as well as dangerous snakes. Second Movement: Earth - Hatred and rape appear on the earth. A group of men and women mourn the murdered teenager. Third Movement: Sky - The gods and goddesses in the sky are indifferent to the turmoil on the earth and still enjoy themselves. The fourth movement: wine, sex and destruction - people indulge in wine and sex. God saw them badly imitating the joys of the upper world, and in anger destroyed the world with fire. In May 1938, this dance drama was performed for the first time in Monte Carlo, Monaco by Basil's Russian Ballet Company.

Ode to Joy and Choral Symphony

In January 1793, Fischenich, a friend of the German poet Schiller and a law professor at the University of Bonn, wrote to Schiller’s wife Charlotte: : "There is a young man... who has a great and lofty ambition to compose Schiller's "Ode to Joy" into music verse by verse." This young man was Beethoven. He was living in Bonn at the time and was only 23 years old. Beethoven drafted the music for "Ode to Joy" in 1798 and 1812. The theme of "Ode to Joy" written in 1812 was later used in the "Nameday Festive Overture in C major" (Op. 115) completed in October 1814. Beethoven's song "Mutual Love" composed for Bürger's poem around 1795 and the theme of "Ode to Joy" in the last movement of "Choral Symphony" are closely related in tone. It can be said that it is "Ode to Joy". Theme's predecessor. Later, Beethoven borrowed this tune as the theme in his 1808 "Fantasia for Piano Chorus in C minor" (Op. 80), singing Kuffner's poem praising the charm of music. The chorus part of "Piano Chorus Fantasia" is an attempt to write the finale of "Choral Symphony". In March 1824, Beethoven wrote to Probst: "The finale of the Choral Symphony is written in the style of the Piano Choral Fantasy, but the scale is much larger. "It can be seen from this that Beethoven's intention of composing the music for "Ode to Joy" began in 1793 and took 30 years of thinking before finally being completed in the "Choral Symphony". The "Choral Symphony" was completed during the reactionary period after the Carlsbad Resolution when all free thought and democratic movements were brutally suppressed. When it was performed for the first time at Vienna's Clenennator Theater in May 1824, the response from the audience was unprecedentedly enthusiastic. When Beethoven came on stage, he was applauded five times by the audience, so much so that the police had to intervene. But Beethoven, who was standing in the band with his back to the audience, could not hear anything. Fortunately, contralto singer Onger held his hand and turned around, and he "saw" the audience's cheers. The extraordinary emotions aroused by the first performance can be seen from the profound practical significance of singing joy, that is, singing freedom, at that time.

◆Les Saint Realm

[Edit this paragraph]

Happily forgetting to eat

One day, Beethoven came to a restaurant to have a meal. After ordering, he suddenly had an inspiration, so he picked up the recipe on the table and composed music on the back of it. After a while, he was completely immersed in the beautiful melody. When the waiter saw Beethoven's very engaged look, he didn't dare to disturb him, but planned to wait for a while before serving him food. About an hour later, the waiter finally came to Beethoven and said, "Sir, will the food be served?" Beethoven immediately paid for the meal as if he had just woken up from a dream. The waiter was as confused as a monk: "Sir, you haven't eaten yet!" "No! I'm sure I've already eaten." Beethoven couldn't listen to the waiter's repeated explanations, and he paid according to the price on the menu. Afterwards, he grabbed the menu filled with musical notes and rushed out of the restaurant.

The day has come

In his later years, Beethoven once heard a friend playing his "Thirty-two Variations in C minor". After listening for a while, he asked: "Whose work is this?" "Yours." The friend replied. "Mine? Could I have written such a clumsy piece?" Then he added: "Ah, Beethoven was such a fool back then!" Goethe's words about Schiller are completely applicable to Beethoven: "Every week he Changing and growing. Every time I see him, I always feel that his knowledge, knowledge and insights have improved compared to the last time." At one time, Beethoven even wanted to destroy the song "Adelaide" he composed in his youth. ” and “Septet in E flat major” (Op. 20). This is by no means accidental. Like Beethoven, it can really be said that "at fifty, he knew what was wrong in forty-nine."

It makes it impossible for opponents to plagiarize

Beethoven made friends with the Brauning family in Bonn when he was 18 years old (1788). The daughter of this family, Eleonore (1772-1841) and his son Lorenz (1777-1798) studied piano with Beethoven. In November 1792, Beethoven left Bonn for Vienna.

Due to a quarrel before leaving, Beethoven did not exchange letters with Eleonore for a year after arriving in Vienna. In 1793, he dedicated his first work published in Vienna (part of which was written in Bonn) to Eleonore. This work is a violin and piano variation on the theme of Figaro's aria in the first act of Mozart's opera "The Marriage of Figaro". In a letter to Eleonore on November 2, 1793, Beethoven said when talking about the technically difficult vibrato in the piano part at the end: "Some people in Vienna listened to my improvisation in the evening, and the next day I would record some of the features of my style and be proud of them as their own. If I hadn't seen through their behavior, I wouldn't have written this kind of music. It was going to be published soon, so I decided to get ahead of it for another reason: I wanted to stump the Viennese pianists, some of whom were my mortal enemies, because I expected that. My variations will meet those so-called gentlemen everywhere and make them look embarrassed." Soon after, Beethoven played this piece in public, showing his superb piano skills.

Rigorous composition attitude

Mendelssohn once made a manuscript of Beethoven public. On this manuscript paper, one place was changed again and again, and twelve layers of small pieces of paper were pasted on it. Mendelssohn uncovered these small pieces of paper one by one and found that the innermost note (the original conception) was exactly the same as the outermost note (the twelfth rewriting). I think that at the beginning, Wang Anshi, a writer in the Northern Song Dynasty, worked hard on the word "green" in the sentence "The spring breeze turns green on the south bank of the river" and imagined dozens of plans before finalizing it. It is precisely because of the creative spirit of outstanding artists from all over the world, both at home and abroad, that "they will never stop until they say something amazing", so that future generations can appreciate such moving works of art. Composing music was a very difficult job for Beethoven. When he wrote the opera "Fidelio", he had ten different beginnings for one of the choruses. The familiar theme of the first movement of "Symphony of Destiny" can be found in more than a dozen different ideas in his drafts. Beethoven often carried a notebook and never forgot to record down sudden inspirations while walking. This is very similar to Li He, a poet from the Tang Dynasty in my country.

◆Radical character

[Edit this paragraph]

Beethoven and his predecessors

Haydn, the "father of symphony", was Beethoven Fen's mentor, but due to different opinions, there are often disagreements between teachers and students. Haydn admired Beethoven's talent very much, but could not tolerate Beethoven's bold innovative spirit and unruly character. Therefore, it was only a matter of time before the two broke up. The great German writers Goethe and Beethoven met in Bohemia in 1812 and spent a month together. Both were impressed, but no friendship was struck. Beethoven admired Goethe's genius passionately, but he could not tolerate some of Goethe's practices. One day, they went for a walk together. On the road, he saw the Austrian Empress leading a group of royal members heading towards them from a distance. Goethe ignored Beethoven's repeated dissuasion and immediately stood respectfully on the roadside. Beethoven said to Goethe: "You don't have to do this. The style of the nobles is stupid and can only show their mediocrity. ... They can pin the medal on anyone's chest, but this person will definitely They may make a person become a seventh- or third-grade civil servant, but they will never produce Goethe or Beethoven..." However, Goethe not only still stood solemnly on the roadside, but also A humble smile began to appear on his face. Beethoven realized that no matter what he said, it would be in vain. So, he held his head high and continued walking forward. As a result, after the Austrian queen and crown prince recognized Beethoven, they took the lead in greeting Beethoven and taking off their hats. When they passed by Goethe, Goethe had already taken off his hat and bowed, without even daring to raise his head. Afterwards, Beethoven sadly said to Goethe: "...you respect them too much." Even so, Beethoven still respected Goethe very much. People found in the conversation book he used when he was completely deaf in his later years that he would not allow others to talk about Goethe in a contemptuous tone; and once told people that he was willing to "sacrifice his life ten times" for Goethe. However, Goethe could not forgive Beethoven throughout his life. His attitude was cold and sometimes even ruthless, which is very puzzling.

"Playing the piano to pigs"

Contempt for the powerful is Beethoven's consistent character. One of Beethoven's friends, Duke Lichnovsky, invited Beethoven to play for the French officers living in his residence, but Beethoven did not agree. The Duke finally put on a straight face and changed the "invitation" to an "order." But Beethoven not only refused without fear, but after returning home, he found a bust that Duke Lichnovsky had given him before and smashed it to pieces. Then, he wrote a letter to the Duke, which said: "Duke, you became a Duke only because of your accidental birth; and I became Beethoven entirely on my own. You There are many such dukes now, and there will be many in the future, but I, Beethoven, will always have only one!" Beethoven was also deeply disgusted with the flattery of the rich men in the upper class. In the era when Beethoven lived, there was a trend in Europe of "collecting celebrities' personal belongings".

A countess once asked Beethoven for a bunch of hair as a souvenir. Beethoven was very dissatisfied with this. Later, he actually wrapped a bunch of goat's beard in paper and sent the lady away. And the countess was still in the dark, thinking she really got the treasure. Once, several nobles were lucky enough to invite Beethoven to enjoy his piano playing together. At first, Beethoven's interest was not bad, but as he played, he gradually discovered that these nobles did not care about his performance, but just wanted to "decorate the appearance" after dinner. So Beethoven immediately put the cover on the piano, left angrily: "I have no interest in playing the piano to pigs!" and walked away.

People on the "blacklist"

In the 1820s, the capitalist revolution in Europe entered a low ebb, and the democratic revolutionaries were ruthlessly suppressed. The same goes for Vienna. But Beethoven ignored the surveillance of spies and spies and often went to small hotels to gather with *** and activists engaged in underground activities. This made him the subject of close attention by the Vienna police, and his name appeared in the secret police's "record book." Faced with this situation, Beethoven still dared to publicly curse the restored Austrian Emperor: "He (referring to the Austrian Emperor) should first be hanged from the first tree!"

1789 French Assets The ideology of class revolution and progress inspired him a lot, thus laying the foundation for his humanistic world - a deep belief in human equality, the pursuit of justice and individual freedom, and a hatred of the oppression of feudal autocracy. Although the three famous composers of the Vienna Classical School lived in a very close era, Beethoven's thoughts obviously did not belong to the same "era" as Haydn and Mozart. Haydn was humiliated throughout his life. Although he was occasionally provoked, he always accepted it. The progressive literary trends and revolutionary sentiments at that time rarely excited him, and his music was always insulated from struggle. Mozart suffered no less spiritually than Haydn. He was brave enough to resist and would rather be poor than endure the insult of the archbishop. However, in his music, behind the joy full of sunshine and youthful vitality, you can often still feel a trace of it. Emotions of pain, melancholy and sadness. Only Beethoven not only angrily opposed the tyranny of the feudal system, but also used his music to call on people to fight for freedom and happiness. Most of Beethoven's creations during his Bonn period (1782-1792) were small piano pieces, ensembles and songs. During this period, it can be said that he was only in the preparatory stage of creation. In the first ten years of his creation in Vienna (1792-1802), the only famous works are "Sorrow", "Moonlight", "Kreutzer" sonata and "Third Piano Concerto". But during this period, he gained a better understanding of social and political issues, and was able to realize the goals he wanted to pursue. From 1802 to 1812, his creation entered a mature period, which later became his "heroic age".

The maturation process of Beethoven's creative activities seems to be quite slow on the surface, but in fact it is very stable. He only began to write his first symphony when he was thirty years old. At this age, Mozart had already written about forty symphonies.

Beethoven had felt his hearing weakening since 1796, but it was not until 1801, when he was convinced that his ear disease was incurable, that he told his friends about it. However, his love for art and life overcame his personal pain and despair - suffering became the source of his creative power. At the height of such a spiritual crisis, he began to compose his optimistic "Eroic Symphony." The "Eroica Symphony" marks a turning point in Beethoven's spirit and also marks the beginning of his "Heroic Age".

In the latter period of Beethoven's stay in Vienna, because Europe was experiencing a period of severe political reaction, that is, a period when Metternich's reactionary rule was particularly rampant, his creations also temporarily declined (1813- 1817). From 1818 onwards, during the last ten years of Beethoven's life (1818-1827), despite being completely deaf, suffering from deteriorating health, living in poverty, and suffering mental torture, he still created """" with giant-like perseverance. "Ninth (Chorus) Symphony" summarizes his glorious and epic life and shows the best wishes of mankind.

Beethoven died in Vienna on March 26, 1827. No relatives were beside him when he died, but when he was buried on the 29th of the same month, a mass wave was formed. All schools? The inscription of Pseudo Jingjing Уjun? Xin Yie Zhi Brown Xi に Tuo Pan? Tomb Zi Bo? Na Gong? When you are in front of him, what envelopes you is not dejection, but a noble feeling; only for a person like him can we say: He has accomplished a great cause... "

Beethoven is one of the great artists in the history of world art. His creations embody his giant-like character and reflect the progressive thoughts of that era. His image of revolutionary heroism can be expressed as "through suffering - to joy." "Through struggle - victory" is summarized.